


Mo Mhadra

by sceawere



Series: Shelby/Solomons Verse [4]
Category: Peaky Blinders (TV)
Genre: Dogs, Established Relationship, F/M, mentions of animal abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-10
Updated: 2018-07-10
Packaged: 2019-06-08 08:58:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15239904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sceawere/pseuds/sceawere
Summary: The duo get a dog. Unconventionally.





	Mo Mhadra

It had been a long day and an even longer night, sorting out the logistics of a deal Alfie had put you in charge of. A deal you’d made him put you in charge of. And were slightly regretting it, as you mustered the energy to strip down, throw on one of Alfie’s crumpled shirts, and crawl into bed at an ungodly hour.

“I love you, sheets” you snuggled into the fabric, “fancy, fancy sheets”

You hadn’t even realised you’d fallen asleep until the scraping of the door woke you up. The room was dark and in your half-conscious stupor you almost missed the whining coming from the shadows.

“Alfie?” you murmured, hoping it was him. You were too tired to fight if it was an intruder.

“See, you woke her up now, din’t ya?” he mumbled to someone else, and you frowned, trying to rouse yourself out of your sleepy state.

“What the fuck is happening?”

You heard him drop his cane against the dresser and lifted yourself heavily from the pillows, muttering to himself as he lit the fire.

“Right, what happened was-“, he turned around to face you and it took you a few seconds to process the tiny dog he was holding in his arms. Alfie paused, searching for the right words to begin his explanation, which gave you plenty of time to work through your haze.

“That’s a dog”

“It is, yeah” he agreed.

“I thought you were meeting-wait, a dog?”

All your thoughts were trying to pour into the same space and you rustled through them for which was most important to you. You moved from your bum to your knees, crawling to the end of the bed to check you were actually seeing this.

“I thought you were meeting with that guy tonight, the...”

You flapped your hand, trying to draw up the name in your head, and the dog wiggled in Alfie’s arm, trying to follow the movement. You gasped at the motion, reaching down to the animal coddled against his chest.

“Oh my gosh, that’s so cute, oh sweetie, come here, gimme, gimme the dog, Alfie”

He scowled at you, reluctant to release them from his arms. You squinted slightly, eyeing the dip of his head towards it’s little ears.

“Alfie give me the small dog, please”

You sat on your knees, arms held out expectantly, staring each other down as he clasped them closer to his chest.

“I don’t want to” he murmured.

“Alfie…”

“It’s my dog, in’t it?”

“Oh, it’s your dog?” you raised your eyebrows, dropping your hands to your thighs.

“My dog, yeah, I found it” he replied, indignant.

“You…found it? Found it where?”

He gave out a whine in his throat to rival the dogs and they turned to lick excited kisses at his beard. You looked down to the animal, and then up to Alfie.

“Alfie, did you go the meeting?” you asked.

“I went to the meeting” he replied straight away.

“Did you…did you steal a man’s dog?”

He stood stock still, the dog still at its affectionate work, lapping at his scruff. Your eyes squinted again.

“Did you kill a man and steal his dog?!” you questioned.

He didn’t reply, the soft whine finally coming from his throat. When he opened his mouth again and took a breath to begin, you pulled the dog away from him, onto your lap and cuddled it close.

“Alfie? Did you kill a man and steal his dog?” it was an accusation this time.

Alfie sighed, throwing his arm up to motion towards the bundle at your belly.

“What was I mean to do, love, leave the poor thing? Look at them, they’re terrified!”

“Because you killed their owner you div, I mean fucking hell!”

The dog let out a whine and both of you went to lay a hand on their head. You got there first and slapped away Alfie’s hand.

“No, you don’t touch the dog with your murder hands”

“Darlin’-“

“I won’t let the big man hurt you, no baby, I won’t”

You lay little kisses on their head before looking up at Alfie through your lashes.

“Murder hands on my dog”, you shook your head at him as you spoke.

“They’re my dog, too” he argued, and you tilted your head.

“A few hours ago they were a dead man’s dog so we can’t all get things we want can we?”

“He wasn’t looking after the dog, love, I had to. It was fucking pitiful, you should have seen it”

You took a beat.

“He wasn’t looking after the dog?” your voice was smaller.

“He was shouting at it and everything, and when he went to kick ‘em, I just, I shot him, din’t I…that’s, I own up to that”

You pulled the dog a little closer to your chest and realised now it wasn’t just small but skinny.

“He was hurting the dog?”

“He was hurting the dog” he confirmed.

“Well then…” you lifted them back up and into Alfie’s arms, as gentle as if you were handing over a new-born, “you can touch the doggie with your murder hands”

They went back to licking kisses at his beard and you smiled at the action.

“I think they like your beard”

“I think they think its fur” he mumbled out, his jaw pulled up at one side as the little thing tried to crawl further up.

You burst out laughing at that, and the sight before you - full body shudder laughing.

“Where are they gonna sleep?”

“In the bed with us, aren’t they? Yes, yes, you can come sleep with us” he muttered down to the dog as they wiggled.

“Alfie, not on the good sheets, though”

He moved around the bed and lowered his arms to let them jump onto the mattress next to you and they set about sniffing and burrowing under the edge of the blanket, seeking the warmth. Alfie pulled his shirt over his head and dumped his clothes on the floor before crawling in with you both.

“Why not, I let you on the good sheets” he chuckled.

You sent a slap against his chest and he smiled at you, leaning back against the pillows and scratching his eyes.

“Oi, mister”

“Yeah, yeah”, he grabbed your arm and pulled you onto him, shuffling into his side and trying to position your legs around the dog under the covers.

“I’ll get ‘em a bed” he agreed after a beat.

You hummed into his shoulder.

“We’re gonna needs bowls and stuff, leads”

“I’ll send Ollie out”

“Best to send one puppy out shopping for another” you joked.

He chuckled against the top of your head, wrapping his arms around you.

“He was hurting the dog, darlin’”

“I know, Alfie, you did the right thing”

“Don’t mind me touching you with my murder hands?” he asked, and you hummed.

“Never bothered me before”

“Just the dog then?”

“Shurrup…what’s their name?”

“Ain’t got one, din’t really stop to ask”

You lay in the silence, both trying to think of something, when the dog shuffled its way up and poked it’s nose out the edge of the covers between you. You breathed out a laugh, taking an ear to scratch each, and as you looked at the golden brown colour of its fur, like a piece of toast, you smiled and turned your head up to Alfie.

“Arán”

“Arán?”

“It means bread Alfie…look at ‘em. Our little loaf of bread in our little bakery, it’ll be our joke. Little Ronny. Like a mascot”

He sighed deeply, scratching at the dog’s ear.

“Fine”

“He’s _our_ dog” you reminded him.

He grumbled, laying back against the pillows and shuffling around, eyes closed.

“Long as you remember I’m the one who killed for him”

You frowned, patting the fluff at the top of the dog’s head.

“Don’t you listen to him, Ronny, you’re gonna grow up to be a good boy, yes you are”


End file.
